Roxy: Stop your "all sex, no surf" ads!

I’ve been surfing for as long as I can remember and worked hard to become a professional surfer. In my time competing, I noticed that male surfers were able to earn a living off their prowess and performance and easily picked up sponsorships and large prizes at competitions. Female surfers, on the other hand, had to present themselves as modelesque beach babes in order to get meager sponsorships, and even to move forward in many competitions.

Roxy’s recent advertisement for a surf competition features a 5-time World Champion surfer suggestively undressing without showing us her face, and never actually shows her surfing! This tells young girls it’s more important to be sexy than to be strong or a good surfer.

In the past, Roxy has portrayed itself as a fun, youthful brand and are at the core of women’s surfing culture. Roxy should make young girls feel empowered to surf -- not self-conscious about their bodies.

I'm meeting with Roxy representatives on September 12th and I'll be delivering the signatures from this petition. I’m asking Roxy to step up and be who they say they are -- representatives of the core of women’s surfing -- and to represent healthy, empowering images of female surfers in their marketing.

Roxy can set the standard within surfing that is inspiring to women and girls. Join me in asking Roxy to promote healthy images of female surfers in their advertising so that all girls can be inspired to ride waves.

Letter to

Roxy

Roxy is the world's most visible and well known women's surf brand. Recently, Roxy released a trailer for the 2013 Roxy Biarritz Pro contest that showcases a style of marketing women's surfing that is not conducive to a healthy, empowered vision of women. Instead of women surfers being presented as an alternative to the sexualization and objectification of women in the culture-at-large, this campaign succumbs to the lazy marketing that is already so prevalent.

As the most visible and well known women's surf brand, Roxy has a unique opportunity to truly make a difference in how women and girls are represented in the world.

We ask that you stop the sexualization of women in your marketing and advertising and instead, help to present women surfers in a light that women can be proud to be associated with and young girls can truly admire.